A Fire Starting in Her Heart
by 0WolfMoon0
Summary: Two months after leaving Ron, Hermione finds herself not quite ready to face him. However, with the help of her ginger haired best friend, and one of the girl's many brothers, Hermione finds herself not only moving on, but letting go. Written for round 11 of the QLFC, Chaser 3 for Kenmare Kestrels (filling in for the lovely Karen Weasley)


**There's a Fire Starting in my Heart (Rolling in the Deep)**

 **A/N: So here's another story for round 11 of the Quidditch League. One of our chasers was out of town for a few weeks, so I am here covering for her. LOVE YA KAREN! In honor of our lovely Chaser 3's obsession with the character of Fred, this fic will disregard his death. :) The prompts are (2) spoon, (5) a picture of a broken wine glass, and (8) determined, as well as the line from Adele's song Rolling in the Deep, shown above.**

Hermione twisted and turned in front of her bathroom mirror. No matter how hard she tried, she simply could not reach the zip on the back. _Damn Ministry dinners,_ she though. _Always forcing me to shove myself into these awful contraptions. Give me trousers any day!_

Finally giving in that she would indeed need help if she wanted to be on time, she grudgingly left the bathroom and knocked on Ginny's door. She heard a scramble, then the door opened revealing a slightly disheveled looking Ginny. Hermione smirked knowingly, while Ginny blushed. Behind her, Harry could be heard entering their master bathroom.

"Could you zip me up, Gin? I could help you fix your hair in return," Hermione asked, smirk still in place. Ginny rolled her eyes.

"Turn around and I'll get it. I was wondering when you'd give in and ask," Ginny replied.

"Says the woman who was most definitely just snogging her husband. Honestly Ginny, I somehow doubt your mind was on whether I would ask for help with my zipper or not," Hermione said, turning around so Ginny could get the zipper.

Her evening gown zipped, Hermione entered Ginny's bedroom, sitting the younger girl in front of the vanity mirror and pulling out her wand. "It's the least I can do, 'Mione," Ginny said. "After everything you went through, after my brother's mistakes..."

"Hush, Gin. You're one of my closest friends, and you're already doing more than enough by letting me stay with you and Harry. I was stupid to agree to live with Ronald instead of buying my own flat. I realise that now," Hermione scolded.

"Yes you were," replied Ginny, meriting a particularly harsh pull on her hair by Hermione. "You're too good for Ron, 'Mione. Everyone knows that. There are plenty of other fish in the sea, and I've got enough brothers to ensure that I'll eventually be your sister in law."

Hermione laughed at Ginny's insinuation. "I'm not dating any of my ex-boyfriend's brothers, Ginny!" she exclaimed. Ginny shrugged in response.

"Think of it as dating your best friend's brothers, not your ex's brothers. Honestly, 'Mione, have some perspective,"Ginny said. Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Whatever you say, Gin. I've got to go finish my makeup, try not to mess up your hair again," Hermione said with a wink, before leaving Ginny in her bedroom.

Harry exited the bathroom and put his arms around his wife from behind. "Do you think she realises what you meant?" asked Harry, whispering in Ginny's ear. Ginny swatted him lightly on the arm.

"Listening in on our private girl talk, were you Mr. Potter?" she said, smirking.

"What if I was, Mrs. Potter?" he replied. "But seriously, does she know he'll be after her?" Ginny shrugged.

"The man had to watch her with Ron for years, had to hide his feelings for the sake of the so-called "bro code." Even if she doesn't realise, he's determined to make his way into her heart any way that he can. It's already been two months since Hermione walked out, so apparently that's a long enough time span for his conscience to give him the go ahead," Ginny replied.

"I still can't believe Ron dated her for so many years without proposing. I mean, he expected all the perks of being married without the actual bond. Idiot. She was bound to get tired of waiting eventually," Harry said. Ginny slapped his arm again.

"Says the man who proposed to me the moment I graduated Hogwarts. Harry James Potter, you don't know the definition of waiting," she said with a smile. "Now finish getting ready. We can't be too late for the Ministry dinner, you know."

Once the three were all finished getting ready, they went together by portkey to their destination and arrived a few minutes early. They were escorted inside and seated at their assigned table. Hermione groaned quietly, noticing that most of the Weasley boys were seated with them. Even after two months, she was still not ready to face Ron.

Covertly, Hermione reached for the name cards at the top of Ron's and Fred's plates and switched them, hoping no one would notice. This would put Fred, George, Bill, and Fleur between herself and Ronald on one side, Harry and Ginny between them on the other, assuming he even showed up. When they had dated, she always had to drag him to these events.

As expected, Bill and Fleur arrived promptly on time for the serving of the first course (soup, like all fine four-course Ministry dinners). Fred and George arrived together two minutes later. They appeared startled at being placed apart from each other, but none of those seated missed the grin that they shared. Hermione narrowed her eyes, not trusting the pranksters as they sat down, Fred right next to her.

As she settled in and conversation began to flow around the table, Fred leaned over toward her. "You look stunning tonight, Hermione," he whispered. Startled, Hermione dropped her spoon back into her soup. She abruptly turned to face Fred.

"Come again?" she asked. Fred smiled, a real smile, unlike the smirks of his school days.

"You're beautiful," he said earnestly. Hermione's face immediately blushed bright red.

"Um... thank you," she replied quietly, returning her attention to her soup. Fred's smile persisted as he slid effortlessly into the table conversation about how business was doing at the shop.

Aside from Fred's comment, the night continued smoothly. The two held up their ends of the table conversation, joking with each other and enjoying being in each other's company. That is, until halfway through the second course. Conversation had turned to the various relationships that had recently emerged within the Auror department when a new voice joined. Hermione froze, wine glass halfway to her mouth, as Ron slid into his seat beside Harry and added his two knuts to the conversation.

Hermione couldn't think, couldn't move. Fred looked at her concerned, before lightly taking her arm and pulling her toward the bathrooms. She hadn't noticed the silent tears streaking down her face, but he had. In the hallway outside the bathrooms, he stopped and turned to face her.

"'Mione, breathe. It's okay, we're all here for you, I'm here for you. Breathe," Fred quietly consoled. He wiped the tears from her face, his own face showing nothing but concern and care for her wellbeing.

Hermione slowly blinked, looking at him as though seeing him for the first time. She breathed, like he asked her to, but it slowly dissolved into sobs. Swearing under his breath, Fred pulled her into a hug. Hermione's wine glass, which she had been holding in a death grip, slid from her grip and shattered on the floor. They both paid it no mind. Fred held her as she sobbed for the first time in two months.

She had allowed herself to be mad, to curse Ron's name, but she had never allowed herself to cry. Now, here she was, two months later, finally having a good cry over him. As her sobs died down, she realised the situation she was in. For the better part of ten minutes, she had been clutching her ex-boyfriend's older brother, leaving tear stains on his dress shirt, while he rubbed her back and murmured softly to her.

"I'm so sorry, Fred. I must look like a mess to you, and I've all but ruined your shirt, and likely your night, too," Hermione said, trying to pull away. Fred chuckled quietly and simply held her tighter.

"You could never look like a mess, Hermione, especially not to me. However, you could do to throw some water on your face. As for the shirt, don't even worry about it, and as for my night, it's all okay as long as I'm spending it with you," he said.

Dumbfounded, Hermione glanced up to find Fred looking down at her in the kindest fashion. When she saw his face, somewhere inside her felt warm. Suddenly, she felt no urge to move from his embrace. She had never felt this way before. It was the way she thought that she should feel when she had first started dating Ron. Her heart grew warm as she stared into Fred's eyes. Slowly, Fred released her.

"Go freshen up, alright? I'll wait here and we'll walk back together," he said. Hermione nodded, ducking into the women's room. Looking down, Fred noticed her broken wine glass and waved down a waiter to have it cleaned up. He wouldn't let her see, she would just feel guilty at having broken the glass.

A few minutes later, a refreshed Hermione emerged from the bathroom. Fred took her hand in his and brought her back to the table. The return walk was somewhat more difficult, as they had to maneuver through the dancing couples on the newly opened dance floor. This signaled to the two that they had been in the back hallway longer than they had thought, as dessert had obviously been served. Ministry dinners were like clockwork, each one exactly the same and perfectly timed.

When they finally arrived at their table, Bill and Fleur, as well as Ron and George were gone, most likely on the dance floor. Ginny smirked at Harry, and Hermione caught her friend whispering something about her determined brother having a chance before they too walked onto the dance floor.

Fred shrugged at their departure, pulling out Hermione's seat for her before taking a seat himself. The two ate their desserts slowly and contentedly talked the night away. Fred tried his hardest to make her laugh, determined to have her enjoy the night, and hopefully his company. He had watched her be unhappy for far too long with his brother, and he wanted to be the reason for her smile. He always had.

The more they talked, the more the warm feeling inside Hermione's heart grew. She smiled, laughed, and enjoyed herself more than she could have imagined. Even when Ron and George returned to the table, she could not bring herself to care, too enthralled with her conversation with Fred to pay them any attention. She was finally moving on, and a fire was starting in her heart that she would be unable to control. She didn't realise this right away though. At the moment, she was content to simply remain ignorant of the world around her and enjoy her evening with Fred.


End file.
